Manny Pacquiao: Will Opposing Obama's Gay Marriage Stance Affect Boxer's Image?

Manny Pacquiao walks a delicate line in his professional life. Not only is he one of the world's most famous athletes, but he also spends his downtime moonlighting as a Congressman in the Philippines. 

When President Barack Obama came out with his stance on gay marriage last week, Pacquiao was asked about his thoughts on the subject in an interview with the National Conservative Examiner. He was not on board with the President's announcement. 

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"God only expects man and woman to be together and to be legally married, only if they so are in love with each other. It should not be of the same sex so as to adulterate the altar of matrimony, like in the days of Sodom and Gomorrah of Old."

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We all have our thoughts about the issue, so trying to keep things as civil as possible, we just want to examine what effect this might have on Pacquiao's image as a boxer. 

The short answer is, Pacquiao speaking out on this issue isn't going to hurt his boxing image at all. Sports fans tend not to focus on what happens with an athlete outside the ring, at least as long as they are performing at a high level. 

For instance, Pacquiao's biggest rival, Floyd Mayweather, has said racist things about Pacquiao in the past. There was a lot of backlash from fans and analysts at the time, but when Mayweather steps into the ring, he is still drawing well over one million buys on pay-per-view. 

The only thing that is really going to hurt Pacquiao's image as a boxer is losing. His performance against Juan Manuel Marquez left a lot of people questioning whether he was starting to slow down. 

No one is going to turn off the television when Pacquiao steps into the ring on June 9 against Timothy Bradley. There might be a few more boos than cheers for Pacquiao on the way to the ring, but everyone is still going to be tuning in to see what he does. 

Sports fans, as a rule, live in a bubble. Anything that happens outside of their world isn't going to change the way they are viewed. If Pacquiao waited until the post-fight interview to say what he did, then boxing fans and analysts would be speaking out. 

Since Pacquiao was speaking to a non-sports media outlet, the overwhelming majority of fans will brush it off as a politician playing the game. That's not to say it is right or wrong; it just is. 

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